LAN Password

I know I already whined about my mainframe password and the new rules they implemented. On the LAN, we have different rules and a different way of being notified that the password will expire. This post is not whining. It's the age-old story of frustration and victory.

One Monday morning last month, I got this email several times from over the weekend:

Our records indicate that your LAN password will expire on 1/23/2005. Please change your password before that date or your account will be disabled.

If you need assistance changing your password, please contact the help desk.

Should your account become disabled, you will also need to contact the help desk to initiate the process of reactivating your account.

It was two weeks early, so I deleted the emails. The next morning there were four more, so I replied to one of the emails with this:

Why do you keep sending me so many notifications? I still have a week and a half, and I prefer to wait until next week. Meanwhile, even though my network logon process reminds me (and I say "no"), you are sending me at least 4 email reminders per day. This morning my inbox had an email from 10:13pm, 1:15am, 1:45am, and 5:45am, all with the same message that I'm going to ignore until later next week.

If you must send email, please limit it to only one per day.

Thank you.

The Help Desk replied:

The E-mail messages you are receiving are automatically generated messages. You will continue to receive the messages until you re-set your password. If you have any further questions, please contact HelpDesk Services Monday through Friday for assistance on troubleshooting your problem.

Thank you,

To which I expressed my extreme frustration by venting to co-workers, who agreed with me that the password-expiration-email situation was out of control. Of course I knew the process was automated. That was the whole problem! When I calmed down, I replied to the Help Desk:

HelpDesk Services,

I understand that the messages are automated, but I recommend you change your automated process on the server to only check once during the night. Chances are good that nobody is going to come in to work between 1:15 and 1:45am to change their password. Meanwhile, all these emails are clogging the email system.

I called the Help Desk, and the response was, "This is an automated process" and "The emails will stop when you change your password." Not very helpful, in my opinion, when my issue was primarily about the quantity of emails and secondarily about the long lead time you give for password changes.

If my password changes on the 23rd, why do you expect me to change it on the 10th? If I always change my password the first time you notify me (so I can prevent the overwhelming flood of emails), then you have effectively reduced my password duration to every 45 days instead of every 60 days.

My main request in bringing this up is that you change your automated server process to only send one email per day. This would allow me to choose the best time to change my password without having to deal with an excessive quantity of reminders.

Thank you.

I made sure to include this, "all these emails are clogging the email system," because the Help Desk regularly sends everyone email reminders not to send lots of chain emails or danger-warning emails. Their prime concern is that the email server not get overwhelmed.

I think my magic statement worked, because the following morning, I only received one email from them, which I deleted and eventually changed my password the day before it expired.

I love it when I have success.